Food additive databasekansui, leavening agent, pH adjuster, yeast foodChecked 2026-10-02
Potassium Carbonate (anhydrous) 炭酸カリウム（無水）
Designated additivePermitted in the EU (E501(i))
- Purpose
- kansui, leavening agent, pH adjuster, yeast food
- On the label
- “かんすい” (kansui), “膨脹剤” (leavening agent), “pH調整剤” (pH adjuster), “イーストフード” (yeast food) (group names), “炭酸カリウム” (potassium carbonate), “炭酸K” (potassium carbonate, abbreviated)
- Name in the List of Designated Additives
- 炭酸カリウム（無水） (No. 247)
In Japan
- Used as kansui (alkaline agent) for Chinese-style noodles, and as a leavening agent, pH adjuster, and yeast food.
- It falls within the group names for kansui, leavening agent, pH adjuster, and yeast food, so when used for those purposes it can be written with the group name. When written by substance name, the abbreviated names are “炭酸カリウム” (potassium carbonate) and “炭酸K” (potassium carbonate, abbreviated). No standards for use have been set.
Japan's standards for use
There are no standards for use that limit which foods or how much (the general standards for all additives still apply).
This is a summary of the standards for use. See the source list for the exact conditions.
In the EU
- It is on the EU list of food additives (Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008, Annex II) as E501(i).
When it is labeled under a shared name
Potassium Carbonate (anhydrous) may be declared on the label in the same way as “かんすい”. See Kansui (alkaline agent for noodles) for details.
Sources
- List of Designated Additives — Japan Food Chemical Research Foundation (Japanese)
- Standards for use and storage of each additive — Japan Food Chemical Research Foundation (Japanese)
- EU food additive database (Japanese translation) — MAFF (Japanese)
- Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 on food additives — EUR-Lex
- 消費者庁「食品表示基準について」別添 添加物関係（簡略名・用途名併記・一括名・栄養強化の範囲） (Japanese)
Checked 2026-10-02. Rules and evaluations change over time. This page is a translation of our Japanese page; if they differ, the Japanese page is the reference.
This page lists facts stated in laws and in evaluations by public bodies; it is not a safety verdict. Additives used in Japan are approved by the government, which sets the foods and amounts they can be used in. The ADI is a guide to the amount that is considered safe to take every day over a lifetime.